Royal Bank of Canada Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) Stock

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA - Free Report) had its price target boosted by Royal Bank of Canada from $158.00 to $161.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the real estate investment trust's stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $157.00 to $155.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Raymond James raised Mid-America Apartment Communities from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $175.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $174.00 to $164.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $174.00 to $173.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $166.00.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Stock Performance

Shares of MAA traded down $0.86 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $156.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 674,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 747,506. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.23 billion, a PE ratio of 34.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.91. Mid-America Apartment Communities has a one year low of $121.51 and a one year high of $167.39. The stock's 50-day moving average is $153.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $155.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a current ratio of 0.08.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $1.19. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.53% and a net margin of 24.03%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mid-America Apartment Communities will post 8.86 EPS for the current year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were paid a $1.515 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 15th. This is a positive change from Mid-America Apartment Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.88%. Mid-America Apartment Communities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 135.27%.

Institutional Trading of Mid-America Apartment Communities

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter worth about $32,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter worth about $37,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 37.2% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 251 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter worth about $45,000. 93.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Mid-America Apartment Communities

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the operation, acquisition, and development of apartment communities. It operates through the Same Store and Non-Same Store segments. The Same Store Communities segment represents those apartment communities that have been owned and stabilized for at least 12 months as of the first day of the calendar year.